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Notes from the Field

Articles and personal reflections from the GWI team as they navigate their lives and their shared work.
By Susan Grove
04.04.25
I've been having a recurring thought the past few months, as I witness our national politics on the one hand, and the way our team operates on the other: that democracy relies on empathy. Is democracy even possible without empathy?
By Hélène Lesterlin
03.12.25
By Micah
09.25.24
I have had the good fortune of attending three carnivals in the past year and a half. They didn’t feature rides or attractions or non-stop action. There was no cotton candy, funnel cake, or coin toss...
By Susan Grove
08.01.24
The idea that we don’t learn well when our nervous systems are on alert and we don’t feel safe now seems like a truth I’ve always known, but it was a revelation when I first heard it.
By Hélène Lesterlin
06.13.24
I saw the future at the Cityscapes Summit, or at least, the future I hope to see in my lifetime: where equity is built into our economic systems from the ground up...
By Susan Grove
05.20.24
There is more than one way to skin a cat. The violence simply isn’t necessary. There is in fact more than one way to pet a cat.
By Jennifer Montalbano
03.12.24
The medicine of right relationship is always there for us, patiently waiting like a mother for her child to find his way home. The prescription is as simple as it is profound — a felt experience of connection.
By Micah
02.29.24
There is more than one way to skin a cat. The violence simply isn’t necessary. There is in fact more than one way to pet a cat.
By Micah
02.14.24
It’s been a challenging start to the year. Last week a colleague said February is the new January, implying the need to begin again. 
By Susan Grove
12.20.23
We can be under so much pressure to always produce, produce, produce. I get that. Yet there are power dynamics in our midst that may be holding back our shared efforts.
By Aja Schmeltz
10.17.23
It is no secret that this is my absolute favorite time of the year. The sunrises and sunsets are particularly vibrant, the colors of our local flora are fantastic, and the bite of the evening air just invites you to snuggle up near a warm fire with a spicy beverage. 
By Susan Grove
09.19.23
I’m recalling a conversation I had with one of my GWI colleagues, a fellow working parent of school-aged children. We agreed that September marks the real start of a new year, not January.

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